Do you have any apps that encourage you to use them? For example, I’ve experienced this several times where I download certain apps and start using them, and I feel like the app itself motivates me to keep doing what it does.
For me, one great example is Obsidian. It really encourages me to write. I have my daily note set up there, and I’m constantly writing in it. I feel like the app invites and encourages me to write. I’ve had the same feeling with other apps I’ve used too.
Sometimes it’s just the design and feel of the Canva app I use it a lot, and every time I open it, I feel inspired to do something or create something. And it’s just the vibe of the app that does that for me.
Eagle for asset management and on iOS something similar with Hash Photos
The app that has come out of left field and become new first News app that I launch is the new Particle News - gorgeous UI, shows multiple takes from aggregated news sources and is beefing up podcasting. I’m probably going to sub to their 29 dollar per year. It’s what Apple News needed to be.
I’m with you on Obsidian but for me it encourages me to mine the snippets I have collected over the years, add a few more and start developing some ideas from decades ago into real projects and things I really want to do and enjoy doing. I set them up, I look for connections and I enjoy working in it.
Too many, but one that I don’t need at all and yet did buy and tinker with from time to time is Photomator for iPad. Why? Because it’s designed for iPad. I mean, really, truly designed for iPad. It is unquestionably a decently powerful photo processing app with all of the basic controls one should expect, plus some more, and it is completely usable on my iPad mini.
This is in stark contrast to something like Affinity Photo which, I’m afraid, listened to Apple with the “move out of the way of content” approach. I think Apple’s mantra has been one of the biggest black marks on the iPad for years. Pundits routinely claim the hardware is many years ahead of the software and this is why. Yes, background processes, audio capture, etc, etc, but Affinity Photo needs none of that and yet it is so arcane that I just never use it.
I see the screenshots for the upcoming Pixelmator Pro for iPad (from the same stable, of course) show the same type of interface that Photomator has. Hallelujah! Maybe Apple will learn something from their new acquisition and lead the way with design that works for iPad.
There is this not very popular app called OpusOne which is the best clone of a Franklin Planner that I know, it integrates your calendar, todos, meeting notes, contacts, goals, personal mission and whatnot. It’s a single cohesive app that aims to cover everything and the subscription was reasonable. The issue with it is that the UI is higlhy outdated in the sense that it is too skeuomorphic. But I still want to use it and keep a keen eye on it.
For me it is Craft. I have just moved over from years on NotePlan 3, which is far more powerful but just less joyful to use, especially on my iPad Pro.
I like the question. I interpret it to mean apps that have a bit of aspirational appeal, that encourage me to do better at something than I ordinarily would do.
iA Writer does this to me because it makes it easier for me to write more thoughtfully and creatively. That’s something I want to be doing more, but in most writing environments (like this comment box) I tend towards prosaic.
Muse is another one; I feel drawn to sketch out big maps of an idea or problem and exhaustively list pros, cons and alternate ideas. The semi-minimalist toolset and Pencil implementation can usually get me thinking when I feel truly lost.
Nice notebooks and pens invite me similarly to both of these apps, too.
Whenever I’m feeling heavy or have a lot going on, DayOne’s wide open page is a welcoming place to be.
Also, Todoist. The natural language input is second nature to me and I can trust it. It always works as I expect and other apps can’t touch it for ease of entry and organization IMO.
Every time I have to hop between Word, Pages and Google Docs. (I work in a Google Dystopia Workspace Public School) I breathe a sigh of relief in Pages.
Lightroom / Photoshop / SilverEfex - This is where I play
Claude Desktop, especially the Claude Code tab - Ditto, although “play” in this case means scratching that “there must be a better way of doing this” itch.
NotebookLM - The Studio panel is fun fun fun
Typora - All my Obsidian notes look so pretty there …
I believe that it is no longer being developed. It sits in a strange limbo. It was created and originally sold by Key Curriculum Press which was acquired by McGraw Hill who then decided to do nothing with it. It is a tragedy IMO.
It is a brilliant piece of software with a fantastically “simple” interface which itself is an inspiration. I can use it every 6 months or so without being totally lost. Rather I am delighted.
I just wish I had occasion to use it more. I am not trying to learn geometry. My personal use is in designing things.
Sketchpad got something profoundly right:
Every construction is visible
Every dependency is understandable
Nothing is hidden behind modes, inspectors, or jargon
You learn geometry by thinking, not by clicking around
Sketchpad is one of those tools that achieved something close to completion. It doesn’t feel half-baked or obsolete in spirit—just stranded technologically. In that sense, it’s almost… finished. There’s something oddly satisfying about that.